The Cardinals have been hunting for steadier production behind the plate all season, and Jimmy Crooks keeps forcing his way into that conversation.
The 24-year-old catcher didn’t begin 2026 in St. Louis.
He opened the year at Triple-A Memphis, which is where the Cardinals expected him to be after a rookie season that gave him a taste of the majors but not much more. Still, every time the club has needed catching depth, Crooks has shown enough to make the case that he belongs in the mix for more than a temporary call-up.
That’s the tension with Crooks right now: the bat is still coming along, but the organization keeps seeing the same traits that made him one of its top prospects in the first place.
Crooks has climbed the Cardinals system the hard way. He starred at Trinity High School in Texas, moved on to McLennan Community College, then transferred to Oklahoma, where he became one of the Sooners’ most reliable hitters and leaders. That offensive profile caught the Cardinals’ eye in the 2022 MLB Draft, when they took him in the fourth round with the No. 127 overall pick.
He didn’t waste time validating that decision. Crooks hit .266 in his first pro season, then followed with a stronger 2023, batting .271 with 12 home runs and 73 RBIs between High-A Peoria and a short stint at Triple-A Memphis. His rise kept rolling in 2024 at Double-A Springfield, where he slashed .321 with 11 home runs and 62 RBIs in only 90 games.
That run cemented his status as one of the organization’s better catching prospects.
The Cardinals gave him his first major league shot late in the 2025 season. Crooks debuted on Aug. 29 against the Cincinnati Reds, then picked up his first big league hit two days later in style, crushing a solo home run off reliever Sam Moll.
His rookie line in that brief look was modest - .133 over 15 games - but the experience mattered. It gave him a chance to see major league pitching up close and start sorting out the adjustments needed at this level.
Now he’s back in the picture again. Through his first stretch of big league action in 2026, Crooks is hitting .147 with two home runs and eight RBIs.
Those numbers don’t jump off the page, but they don’t erase what the Cardinals believe he can become. The left-handed hitter has already shown across the minors that he can hit, and the club has also liked what it has seen from him defensively, including his game-calling and leadership.
St. Louis already has Iván Herrera and Pedro Pagés on the roster, but catching depth is never a bad thing to have. Crooks gives the Cardinals another young, controllable option at a premium position, and at 24, he still has room for the bat to catch up to the rest of his game.
If he keeps taking advantage of the chances he gets, Crooks could end up being more than just a depth piece. He’s making a real case to stay in St. Louis, both now and down the road.
In Other News...
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Cardinals Fans Keep Seeing The Same Trevor Condon Draft Mix-Up
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For Cardinals fans, the mix-up has been easy to understand because Trevor Condon is the one wearing the St. Louis draft tag, while Charlie arrived with his own high-profile profile as one of the top players in the class. Charlie has said the brother question comes up often, and the overlap only gets more noticeable when both players are being discussed as major league prospects from Georgia, with their paths now headed in very different directions. [Read more 🡒]